Greek Myths, Legends & Tales
Aesculapius - named in the first line of the Hippocratic Oath (V, chapter 46) Aesculapius was a son of Apollo and a god of medicine
Apollo - one of the rooms in the Palace of Versailles is called the Salon of Apollo (DIA, chapter 9) The Apollo Salon was one of seven rooms in the King's Grand Apartment which were used as venues for official acts of state by the King. The Apollo Salon was the most luxuriously decorated of the seven. Apollo was the Sun God in Greek mythology and Louis XIV derived his nickname of the Sun King from this and so the room was of great significance symbolically during his reign.
The first line of the Hippocratic Oath is, 'I swear by Apollo the physician ..." (V, chapter 46) Apollo is associated with medicine and healing
Artemis - the name of the ship that Jamie and Claire take in pursuit of Ian when he is kidnapped from the seal's island (V, chapter 40) Artemis is the daughter of Zeus and Leto, and the twin sister of Apollo, She is the goddess of the hunt, wild animals, childbirth and virginity. Her Roman equivalent is Diana.
Cassandra - when Claire has to give Jenny advice to help Lallybroch prepare for the coming Rising, she understands why Cassandra is so unpopular. (Outlander, chapter 33) Cassandra was the daughter of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy. Cassandra agreed to have sex with Apollo in return for being given the gift of prophecy. When she broke her side of the bargain she was allowed to keep the gift of prophecy but was cursed with never being believed
Charybdis - see 'Scylla and Charybdis' below
Eurydice - Louise de la Tour de Rohan has a gilt-bronze sconce in the shape of Eurydice in her country house at Fontainebleu (DIA, chapter 26) Eurydice was the daughter of Apollo and the wife of Orpheus.
Faun - Claire tells Jamie his ears are slightly pointed at the tips like a faun's (DIA, chapter 6) A faun is a Greek god who is half-human and half-goat and lives in the forest
Hygeia - named in the first line of the Hippocratic Oath (V, chapter 46) Hygeia was the daughter of Aesculapius and the goddess of health, cleanliness and hygiene
Judgment of Paris - one of the stain-glass windows in the upstairs hallway of Jared Fraser's townhouse shows the scene of the Judgment of Paris. This is the window that Jamie smashes after conceding to Claire's demand that he not kill Jack Randall for a year until Frank's ancestor can be conceived (DIA, chapter 21) The Judgment of Paris refers to the judgment made by the Trojan mortal Paris, as to which of the three goddesses, Hera, Athena and Aphrodite, deserved the golden apple which was inscribed 'for the fairest one'. All three goddesses offered bribes to Paris, but Paris accepted Aphrodite's bribe which was the hand of the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Sparta, wife of the Greek king Menelaus. Helen of Sparta became Helen of Troy and the attempts by the Greeks to get her back led to the Trojan War.
Medusa - just before Claire enters Jamie's print shop after going back through the stones, she takes a look at her reflection in a shop window and sees that her hair is "writhing out of its hairpins in excellent imitation of Medusa's locks" (V, chapter 24) Medusa was a Gorgon monster who had snakes instead of hair
Odysseus - when Jamie and Claire first arrive at Lallybroch, Jamie is greeted rapturously by the Lallybroch dogs and Claire compares this to Odysseus returning from the Trojan War and being recognised by his faithful hound. Jamie extends the metaphor by comparing himself to Odysseus returning home disguised as a beggar and having to deal with Penelope and her suitors (Outlander, chapter 26)
Pan - Claire mistakes a statue of the Four Humours of Man in the gardens of the Palace of Versailles for a statue of Pan (DIA, chapter 9) Pan is the Greek god of the wild, shepherds and flocks. He has the legs and horns of a goat and is often depicted playing the pan flute.
Panacea - named in the first line of the Hippocratic Oath (V, chapter 46) Panacea is the daughter of Aesculapius and a goddess of cures and panaceas
Phoenix - while onboard the Artemis, Claire describes the rising moon as coming "out of the water and into the sky like a phoenix rising". The phoenix is a mythical bird which cannot die being constantly reborn from the ashes of its previous existence
Prometheus - when Claire makes love to Jamie after he gives her his wedding ring she can feel her two wedding rings on her left and right hands and they feel to her like tiny shackles and she feels as if she is held in bondage like Prometheus on his rock (Outlander, chapter 23) Prometheus was a Greek Titan who angered Zeus. Zeus punished Prometheus by chaining him to a rock for eternity
River Styx - Claire describes the darkness in the thieves hole at Cranesmuir as being a Stygian black (Outlander, chapter 25). This is a reference to the colour of the River Styx which is the boundary between earth and the underworld in Greek mythology
Scylla and Charybdis - When Ian Snr is contemplating having to confess to a priest what he did with Rebekah, Jamie describes his eyes as 'darting right and left from Scylla to Charybdis' (Virgins). In Greek legend, Scylla and Charybdis are mythical sea monsters who lie on either side of the Strait of Messina between Sicily and Italy. Sailors navigating the strait cannot avoid one without getting too close to the other. The saying 'between Scylla and Charybdis' means the same as 'between a rock and a hard place' or 'the lesser of two evils'
Triton - there is a statue of Triton in a pool at Louise de Rohan's house (DIA, chapter 11) Triton is a Greek god, the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite. He is the messenger of the sea acting as herald for his father and is usually depicted as a merman
Apollo - one of the rooms in the Palace of Versailles is called the Salon of Apollo (DIA, chapter 9) The Apollo Salon was one of seven rooms in the King's Grand Apartment which were used as venues for official acts of state by the King. The Apollo Salon was the most luxuriously decorated of the seven. Apollo was the Sun God in Greek mythology and Louis XIV derived his nickname of the Sun King from this and so the room was of great significance symbolically during his reign.
The first line of the Hippocratic Oath is, 'I swear by Apollo the physician ..." (V, chapter 46) Apollo is associated with medicine and healing
Artemis - the name of the ship that Jamie and Claire take in pursuit of Ian when he is kidnapped from the seal's island (V, chapter 40) Artemis is the daughter of Zeus and Leto, and the twin sister of Apollo, She is the goddess of the hunt, wild animals, childbirth and virginity. Her Roman equivalent is Diana.
Cassandra - when Claire has to give Jenny advice to help Lallybroch prepare for the coming Rising, she understands why Cassandra is so unpopular. (Outlander, chapter 33) Cassandra was the daughter of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy. Cassandra agreed to have sex with Apollo in return for being given the gift of prophecy. When she broke her side of the bargain she was allowed to keep the gift of prophecy but was cursed with never being believed
Charybdis - see 'Scylla and Charybdis' below
Eurydice - Louise de la Tour de Rohan has a gilt-bronze sconce in the shape of Eurydice in her country house at Fontainebleu (DIA, chapter 26) Eurydice was the daughter of Apollo and the wife of Orpheus.
Faun - Claire tells Jamie his ears are slightly pointed at the tips like a faun's (DIA, chapter 6) A faun is a Greek god who is half-human and half-goat and lives in the forest
Hygeia - named in the first line of the Hippocratic Oath (V, chapter 46) Hygeia was the daughter of Aesculapius and the goddess of health, cleanliness and hygiene
Judgment of Paris - one of the stain-glass windows in the upstairs hallway of Jared Fraser's townhouse shows the scene of the Judgment of Paris. This is the window that Jamie smashes after conceding to Claire's demand that he not kill Jack Randall for a year until Frank's ancestor can be conceived (DIA, chapter 21) The Judgment of Paris refers to the judgment made by the Trojan mortal Paris, as to which of the three goddesses, Hera, Athena and Aphrodite, deserved the golden apple which was inscribed 'for the fairest one'. All three goddesses offered bribes to Paris, but Paris accepted Aphrodite's bribe which was the hand of the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Sparta, wife of the Greek king Menelaus. Helen of Sparta became Helen of Troy and the attempts by the Greeks to get her back led to the Trojan War.
Medusa - just before Claire enters Jamie's print shop after going back through the stones, she takes a look at her reflection in a shop window and sees that her hair is "writhing out of its hairpins in excellent imitation of Medusa's locks" (V, chapter 24) Medusa was a Gorgon monster who had snakes instead of hair
Odysseus - when Jamie and Claire first arrive at Lallybroch, Jamie is greeted rapturously by the Lallybroch dogs and Claire compares this to Odysseus returning from the Trojan War and being recognised by his faithful hound. Jamie extends the metaphor by comparing himself to Odysseus returning home disguised as a beggar and having to deal with Penelope and her suitors (Outlander, chapter 26)
Pan - Claire mistakes a statue of the Four Humours of Man in the gardens of the Palace of Versailles for a statue of Pan (DIA, chapter 9) Pan is the Greek god of the wild, shepherds and flocks. He has the legs and horns of a goat and is often depicted playing the pan flute.
Panacea - named in the first line of the Hippocratic Oath (V, chapter 46) Panacea is the daughter of Aesculapius and a goddess of cures and panaceas
Phoenix - while onboard the Artemis, Claire describes the rising moon as coming "out of the water and into the sky like a phoenix rising". The phoenix is a mythical bird which cannot die being constantly reborn from the ashes of its previous existence
Prometheus - when Claire makes love to Jamie after he gives her his wedding ring she can feel her two wedding rings on her left and right hands and they feel to her like tiny shackles and she feels as if she is held in bondage like Prometheus on his rock (Outlander, chapter 23) Prometheus was a Greek Titan who angered Zeus. Zeus punished Prometheus by chaining him to a rock for eternity
River Styx - Claire describes the darkness in the thieves hole at Cranesmuir as being a Stygian black (Outlander, chapter 25). This is a reference to the colour of the River Styx which is the boundary between earth and the underworld in Greek mythology
Scylla and Charybdis - When Ian Snr is contemplating having to confess to a priest what he did with Rebekah, Jamie describes his eyes as 'darting right and left from Scylla to Charybdis' (Virgins). In Greek legend, Scylla and Charybdis are mythical sea monsters who lie on either side of the Strait of Messina between Sicily and Italy. Sailors navigating the strait cannot avoid one without getting too close to the other. The saying 'between Scylla and Charybdis' means the same as 'between a rock and a hard place' or 'the lesser of two evils'
Triton - there is a statue of Triton in a pool at Louise de Rohan's house (DIA, chapter 11) Triton is a Greek god, the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite. He is the messenger of the sea acting as herald for his father and is usually depicted as a merman